The Blue Devils hosted two top-10 teams last week but might face their stiffest nonconference test and a potential Final Four preview at Koskinen Stadium this weekend.
No. 6 Duke will meet its third consecutive top 10-foe in No. 4 West Virginia Friday at 7 p.m. at Koskinen Stadium before hosting High Point Sunday at 6 p.m. After suffering an early upset to Arkansas in late August, the Blue Devils have since raised their level of play, notching shutouts wins against Coastal Carolina and then-No. 9 Minnesota and tying then-No. 8 North Carolina.
After starting the season ranked No. 2, Duke has its final chance to earn a statement nonconference win before starting a tough ACC slate next week.
“They’re very talented, as talented as anybody we’ll see. They’re going to use their athleticism to try to get in behind you,” Blue Devil head coach Robbie Church said of West Virginia. “It’s the most explosive team we’ve seen both in the midfield and upfront, so it’s really going to be a test for our back and goalkeepers.”
Luckily for Duke (4-1-1), junior goalkeeper E.J. Proctor carries a 331-minute shutout streak into the contest against the Mountaineers. On Sunday against the Golden Gophers, the Blue Devils forced Minnesota to settle for long-distance attempts, surrendering just two shots on goal.
And even when the Golden Gophers—who entered the game averaging 3.2 goals per game—got a clear shot early in the contest against Proctor, the 2015 College Cup Most Outstanding Player on Defense came up with a clutch save to put Duke in position for its first win of the season against a ranked team.
“Minnesota had a nice combination at the top of our box and the [Minnesota player] struck it well and E.J. moved her feet, got low and got down on it and just made a great save,” Church said. “That was a save that was a real momentum changer.”
Led by Proctor and senior co-captains Lizzy Raben and Christina Gibbons, the Duke defense will look to shut down the high-powered Mountaineer offense to hand West Virginia (5-0-1) its first loss of the season.
The Mountaineers scored at least four goals in six of their final 10 games in 2015 en route to the quarterfinals of the NCAA tournament and have picked up where they left off led by All-Big 12 forwards Michaela Abram and Sh’Nia Gordon. The duo has combined for 25 career goals, and team with junior Heather Kaleiohi to form a dynamic trio that will test the Blue Devil back line. Kaleiohi leads the team with three goals in four games played this season.
Like Duke, West Virginia has already faced some of the nation’s top teams, notching wins against No. 19 Ohio State and then-No. 10 Clemson.
Against an equally explosive team, the Blue Devil offense will have to be more efficient with its shot attempts than it has been at times early in the season.
It took Duke 39 shots to net its two goals against Coastal Carolina and despite dominating play against the Tar Heels and attempting 30 shots, the Blue Devils were unable to find the back of the net. Several Duke shots bounced off the crossbar and post, opportunities the Blue Devils will look to finish this weekend as they did Sunday, when Gibbons set up freshman midfielder Ella Stevens for a first-half score.
“Sometimes we’ve bailed some goalkeepers out by settling for some of the shots. Maybe [we can use] the extra pass or a harder run in the box,” Church said. “Against quality teams, you’re not going to score a lot of goals.”
Following another top-10 battle, Duke’s depth could be important less than 48 hours later against High Point (3-2-1) in the Blue Devils’ nonconference finale. The Panthers finished with just five losses last year, but have so far struggled against power-five conference teams this season, falling to N.C. State and Kentucky last weekend.
Get The Chronicle straight to your inbox
Signup for our weekly newsletter. Cancel at any time.